Surround-sound heaven!
Written: Jul 17 '03 (Updated Jul 17 '03)
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Pros: Fabulous sound, especially music surround.
Cons: Somewhat weak Tuner section (handling).
The Bottom Line: This is an incredible receiver with a surround section for music that beats the rest.
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| nightingales's Full Review: Yamaha RX-V2300 6.1 Channels Receiver |
I want to start by pointing out that I might be somewhat unique in that I have bought this A/V-Receiver even though I am currently not using it with any video-equipment (no DVD, movies, etc.). So keep in mind that my review is biased towards music listening experience. Also, I did not have a rear center speaker, so everything listed here refers to a 5.1-speaker setup. I don't think a rear center speaker makes a big difference for music surround, but then, I could be wrong. (It could even sound better?!)
That said, I just got the RX-V2300 and I am totally happy with the surround sound it provides. Yamaha came out in the early 80's (1979 even?) with their first consumer surround-processor and I remember listening to it and simply loving it. Since I couldn't afford it at all back then I kind of put it on the back-burner.
About 12 years ago I bought a decent Kenwood Surround-Receiver (before digital Dolby and all) and though it did provide some surround sound not only for movies but also simulated for music, I could never get the Yamaha sound out of my mind. Yamaha used and uses DSP-power to actually recreate real listening environments, such as Jazz-club, cathedral, rock-concert, concert halls, etc. The 2300 offers a total of 26 different surround-modes with sub modes on top of it (that is including movie modes).
It sounds totally fantastic! The best setting is if you listen intently to some music for a while and don't even really notice that it is in surround-mode, until you switch the surround off and notice how much is missing!
That said, I wanted to stress that the Stereo sound is simply superb as well, plenty of power at all times and still incredible detail. I listen to a range of music that includes classical, jazz and rock and all sounded just great. (Speakers are a Sony SA-VE535 6-speaker system.)
The one little gripe I have is about the tuner section. First of all, the 2300 allows you to rename any input etc., but it won't allow naming tuner stations. That is odd in this price range. Secondly, the only way to access your preset stations is pretty cumbersome - you select a "bank" (A/B/C/D/E) and then toggle through 8 stations each. I was used to directly accessing preset stations on the Kenwood and this is very annoying. Other than that, reception is great and sound is great as well - it is just the handling the needs improvement. If you don't often change stations, this is minor, of course.
Some other features - the receiver has an abundance of in- and outputs, I can't imagine using them up, ever. It allows a lot of settings and tweaking, even though I would not have minded to be able to switch the cross-over frequencies for the subwoofer and satellites (you can't - I think I read some Onkyo's support that?). The remote is learning, multibrand and macro-capable - the only improvement I could think of would have been RF instead of just IR.
Second room/source is greatly supported - as compared to the 1300, you can select the source for your second room separately (it is the "Record Out Selector"). When you have two pair of main speakers hooked up, you can have the second set running (say, in the kitchen) while still maintaining surround sound in your living room. Most receivers will turn surround off when you listen to A+B speakers!
The touch-and-feel of the unit is definitely superb - you can feel the high-class craftsmanship. I am expecting long, long years of satisfied use out of it.
Setup: RX-V2300 with Sony CDP-CE545 CD Changer / Player, Sony Tape-Deck, Rio MP3-Receiver, Sony SA-VE535 5.1 speaker system.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 699
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Epinions.com ID:
nightingales
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Location: GA
Reviews written: 1
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